Supreme Court to hear Zahir Jaffer’s review appeal in Noor Mukadam Murder Case on June 4

ISLAMABAD – The horrific Noor Mukadam murder case comes into headlines as Supreme Court of Pakistan is set to hear a high-profile review petition filed by convicted murderer Zahir Jaffer on June 4 Thursday. As per official cause list, a 3-member bench headed by Justice Hashim Kakar will take up the appeal, in which Jaffer, already on death row for murder, has challenged key parts of his conviction. The case stems from the brutal July 2021 killing of Noor Mukadam at Jaffer’s residence in Islamabad, an incident that shocked the entire country. Investigators had concluded that Noor was subjected to severe torture before being murdered, leading to one of Pakistan’s most widely followed criminal trials. After detailed trial, a district and sessions court in February 2022 sentenced Jaffer to death for murder and also handed him 25 years of rigorous imprisonment on rape charges. Two household employees were also convicted and given 10-year prison sentences each, while Jaffer’s parents were later acquitted despite initially facing charges. Islamabad High Court upheld the death penalty, but Jaffer later moved the Supreme Court seeking a review of the verdict. In his latest plea, the convict’s legal team argues that the courts did not properly address claims regarding his mental condition and alleged unsoundness of mind. They also contend that the rape allegation is not supported by sufficient evidence on record. A key point of contention remains the video footage used in the conviction. The petition claims the recordings were not properly proved during trial and were not shared with the defence, raising questions about due process. However, the Supreme Court earlier relied on this digital material under the “silent witness theory,” which allows video evidence to be treated as direct proof even without eyewitness testimony. Previously, the apex court had upheld the murder conviction and death sentence, converted the rape conviction into life imprisonment instead of capital pu